The lone Shriner

Casper Star Tribune ^ | 18 June 2003 | BRENDAN BURKE

[SLB]

A 2,300-mile trip on an airplane is a one-day foray, in a car it's a long trip that will take a few days, but on horseback, it is an epic journey that can last months.

It is with the locomotive means of the epic journeyer that Bob Gacke of Port La Vaca, Texas, has chosen to undertake a 2,300-mile odyssey across the American interior to bring attention to, and raise money for, Shriner Hospitals.

"I've been a Shriner for 25 years and I just have a real passion for the care of these kids in these hospitals," Gacke said Tuesday as he made a stop in Casper. "So to ride from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada is one thing, but to do it and raise a substantial amount of money for the hospital is another. So it is kind of a win-win for everybody."

Gacke left the Gulf Coast of Texas on March 1 and plans to finish his journey around Aug. 1 in Sweetgrass, Mont., on the Canadian border, he said.

Accompanying Gacke are his horse, Fancy, and two mules, Bud and Miss Maddie.

For the most part, the 49-year-old cowboy rides Fancy and uses the two mules to carry supplies, but he has ridden Bud at points along the way, he said.

Among the supplies Gacke carries with him are a lap-top computer -- which he uses to make diary entries on his Web site (www.whereisbob.com) -- food for himself, feed for his horses, and a tent, which he said he has only had to pitch about six or seven times during the trip.

The tent has mostly gone unused, he said, because people along the way have allowed him to stay at hotels free of charge.

Gacke, who is vice president of a publishing house in Texas, has tried to stay on roads that run through large population centers, like Denver, in order to bring more attention to himself, thereby bringing more attention to the good work that Shriners do for sick children and in an effort to reach his fund-raising goal of $500,000.

Fellow Shriner Hal Williamson of Casper said endeavors like Gacke's are true refections of the Shriner spirit.

"That's dedication and ... what the Shriners believe in," said Williamson, past potentate of the Korein Temple.

The Shriners have 22 hospitals located around the nation, none of which charge the families of children treated at them for the care they receive, Williamson said. The Shriner hospital nearest to Casper is located in Salt Lake City and specializes in orthopedic care, he added.

Gacke said he has confronted all kinds of weather along the long road he, Fancy, Bud and Miss Maddie have walked.

"I haven't ridden through a hurricane, but I think I've been through everything else," he said.

He added that perhaps the most frightening weather he has confronted so far came his way a few days ago as he rode between Bosler and Rock River in Albany County.

"I was riding along and I saw these blue clouds building and coming my way and I was just thinking, 'There is no way that I am going to get out of this one,'" Gacke said. "And there is no place to hide, no place to go, there is no place, I mean you are out there in the middle of nowhere. And so I got off and I tied my mules head-to-tail and so all they could do is go around in circles."

After he tied his mules he noticed that the clouds above him were going in a circular motion, and Gacke was sure a tornado was heading his way.

"I thought, 'This ain't good, this is not going to be good.' And I started thinking, 'You know this could be it. This old boy from Texas is going to end up dying right here in Wyoming,'" he said.

"I have always heard that a tornado sounds like a train, like a freight train," Gacke continued.

"And man I could hear that freight train noise and I thought 'Man this is it,' And boy that sound got louder and louder, that freight train. And all of the sudden I looked up and there was a freight train going by! I forgot that I was riding along side a railroad track!"

The realization brought a moment of jubilation.

"I got so happy, I just started dancing around in the hail," he said.

Gacke can joke about the story now, but at the time, things got so tense, he confessed his sins to the only thing that would listen, Miss Maddie the mule.

"I confessed all my sins to Miss Maddie. And when I realized it was just a freight train going by it dawned on me that she know all my sins," Gacke said with a laugh. "So if that mule ever goes to talking, I am just going to have to shoot her."

From Casper, Gacke said he plans on heading toward Cody and then up to Yellowstone where he plans on crossing over into Montana.

On his Web site, Gacke advises anyone who sees him -- he can be recognized by a yellow banner on one of his mules that reads "www.whereisbob.com" -- to honk twice after they pass him and let him know you support him on his journey.

Anyone wishing to donate to the Shriners Hospitals can either log on to Gacke's Web site or contact Casper's local Shrine Club.

[SLB]

Visit Bob's web site. Good reading and the chance to donate to a good cause. $5.00 to $5000.00 - it is money well worth it.

www.whereisbob.com

Will get you there.

[SLB]

I invite you to visit Bob's web page and then leave him with a little something at the donation button. Then bump this on to more FReepers.

[SLB]

Try this link instead:

http://www.whereisbob.com/where_is_bob_2_001.asp

It worked for me.

[curmudgeonII]

Sooner or later it will occur to some of our foggier minded Freepers that all Shriners are Masons. Then wait for the usual anti-Masonic gibberish.

[Eastbound]

Bump for Shriner's Hospitals, the kids that need them, and the folks that support them.

[SLB]

Maybe I am more than a little daft, I support the Shriner's, but want little to do with a run of the mill mason.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Maybe I am more than a little daft, I support the Shriner's, but want little to do with a run of the mill mason.

We probably don't want much to do with you either.

[jimt]

Donated and bumped. Shriners are a great organization.

[SLB]

We probably don't want much to do with you either.

As long as I can continue to donate to the Shriner's that is all I ask.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

As long as I can continue to donate to the Shriner's that is all I ask.

And your gifts are greatly appreciated, if not your opinions.

[curmudgeonII]

Maybe I am more than a little daft, I support the Shriner's, but want little to do with a run of the mill mason.

If you've looked into masonry in a dispassionate manner and can make this assessment then I would have to agree with your premise....you're more than a little daft. {Excellent word, by the way. Not used often enough today.]

[Notwithstanding]

Who are the Shriners? The Shriners are an organization of 32nd degree or York Rite Masons who are best known for their red fezzes, little motor cars and circus parades. The Shrine is also known for its hospitals and other philanthropic activities. Masons call the Shrine the "playground of Freemasonry." Most of the public is unaware of the fact that all Shriners are Master Masons (but not all Masons are Shriners). Like the previous Masonic degrees, candidates for the Shrine are initiated with a solemn religious ceremony at the local Mosque (the Islamic gathering place of the Shrine). All candidates, including Christians, must swear an oath to Allah on the Koran declaring that they would be worthy of having their eyeballs pierced to the center with a three-inch blade, their feet flayed, and forced to walk the hot sands of the sterile shores of the Red Sea, where the flaming sun shall strike them with a livid plague, rather than to violate their Shriner Masonic oath.

[SLB]

if not your opinions.

I try to not discuss too much religion here and that is what any discussion on masons involves. Better to remain friends. Like I said, I donate to the Shriner's as they do wonderful things for kids. I took my family to the Shriner Circus in Louisville this winter. Great performance and the money went to the right place.

[SLB]

If you've looked into masonry in a dispassionate manner

See my other comments on discussing religion. I know where I stand with our Lord and that is good enough for me.

[Notwithstanding]

Shriners Oath

The Oath of a Shriner!

Candidates for induction into the Shriners are greeted by a High Priest, who says:

 “By the existence of Allah and the creed of Mohammed; by the legendary sanctity of our Tabernacle at Mecca, we greet you.”

The inductees then swear on the Bible and the Koran, in the name of Mohammed, and invoke Masonry's usual gruesome penalties upon themselves:

 “I do hereby, upon this Bible, and on the mysterious legend of the Koran, and its dedication to the Mohammedan faith, promise and swear and vow … that I will never reveal any secret part or portion whatsoever of the ceremonies … and now upon this sacred book, by the sincerity of a Moslem's oath I here register this irrevocable vow … in willful violation whereof may I incur the fearful penalty of having my eyeballs pierced to the center with a three-edged blade, my feet flayed and I be forced to walk the hot sands upon the sterile shores of the Red Sea until the flaming sun shall strike me with livid plague, and may Allah, the god of Arab, Moslem and Mohammedan, the god of our fathers, support me to the entire fulfillment of the same. Amen. Amen. Amen."

With this oath, Christians swear on the Koran, and declare Allah to be “the god of our fathers.” From the perspective of Christianity and Islam alike, Shriners take the name of God in vain, and mock both faiths.

Excerpt from The Origins and Influence of Masonry

by Lee Penn, SCP Journal Vol. 25:2-25:3 2001

P0 Box 4308, Berkeley, CA 94704

Jesus People  www.mission.org/jesuspeople

[Eric in the Ozarks]

My dad's Shrine Club in 1950s Tokyo adopted an unusual orphanage located out in the countryside in southwestern Japan. It was made up of the mothers and fathers of war dead--many in their 60s and 70s, who had lost the extended family connection that is common in Japanese families. They all wore closed cropped hair and black or grey kimonos and I recall the place was usually freezing cold. The only time I ever saw any of them smile was when one of the chubbier Shrine Club members showed up in a Santa suit with gifts.
That a group of mostly American WW II vets could have sympathy for these cast-offs from Japanese society speaks well for the Masonic movement.

[Notwithstanding]

Did your dad swear an oath to the god Allah?

[Notwithstanding]

Is allah the god of your fathers?

[AxelPaulsenJr]

I try to not discuss too much religion here and that is what any discussion on masons involves.

Your comments are appreciated. However for the oncest and last time, Masonry is not a religion. Nor does it pretend to be.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

He died in 1966. I'll ask him when I see him.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

lol

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Bullshit, absolute bullshit.

[AppyPappy]

It must be true. It's in writing.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

It must be true. It's in writing.

Hey ya know that's true. So Hitlery's book must be true as well?

[Dataman]

Nice symbolism. Looks Islamic to me.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

So that's where Buckwheats knife went!

[Chemist_Geek]

It must be true. It's in writing.

Not only that, but, it's on the Internet! It absolutely must be true.

As an aside, this thread has great potential for imbecility - the Masonic bashers and the Crusaders ought to show up pretty quickly. All we need is some link to the War on Drugs, to get them in here...

[Chemist_Geek]

Nice symbolism. Looks Islamic to me.

What'd I write about the Crusaders..? *grin*

[AxelPaulsenJr]

As an aside, this thread has great potential for imbecility - the Masonic bashers and the Crusaders ought to show up pretty quickly. All we need is some link to the War on Drugs, to get them in here...

Well then, could I introduce someone who is in the rackets?

[SLB]

Would you pull this thread for me? I had hoped FReepers could discuss this as adults and leave the pro-mason versus anti-mason aspect out. Obviously FReepers do not have that level of maturity at this time. I had hoped people would see fit to read, make a comment and then donate. Guess I had too high an expectation for FReepers.

[Notwithstanding]

If this is not the actual oath, then , of course, you will let us all know what the actual oath is, then?

Please. You are soooooo not credible on this.
Masons should not be afraid to admit where their allegiances lie!

[Notwithstanding]

If this is not the actual oath, then , of course, you will let us all know what the actual oath is, then?

Please. You are soooooo not credible on this.
Masons should not be afraid to admit where their allegiances lie!

[curmudgeonII]

Strange.
I've been a Shriner since 1976 and I never took such an oath.
Strange.

[sasportas]

I do wish the Shriners would respond to your request. Ever since 9/11 I consider supporters of the Koran the enemies of America - and I don't care what kind of philantrophic front they put up to fool people.

One one hand they want us to think of them as helpers of burn victims, and on the other hand, they secretly swear undying allegiance to the Islamic code, the Koran? Which promises to wage war, and exterminate all non-muslims?

I'd like to know the truth. Do they, or do they not, make these horrible antichristian, and anti-Jewish oaths of allegiance? If this is true here in 9/11 America, the Shriners should be tried for treason.

[Coleus]

They put on a nice circus too.

[Coleus]

Strange.
I've been a Shriner since 1976 and I never took such an oath.
Strange. >>>

You must have been asleep!

[Amadeo]

I never took that oath either. Pure fiction.

[sasportas]

So you deny the Shriner oath "notwithstanding" has posted? I have heard of men who have been convicted that Masonry is wrong and left the Masons, some of them because of oaths such as this. I have never been a Mason myself, so I tend to rely on men who have been in it as to the nature of their oaths.

Who is lying? These men who have left Masonry, or you? Please tell those of us who have never been Masons, we'd like to know. Please tell us what part of the oath notwithstanding posted is different from the one you took.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

It is so telling how kooks tend to repeat themselves mindlessly.

Masons should not be afraid to admit where their allegiances lie!

The only requirement asked of a man seeking to join the Masonic Lodge is that he profess a belief in God. And for your edification: The God referrred to here is the daddy of Jesus.

[af_vet_rr]

That is complete BS! I have never had to take such an oath, nor have I heard of such an oath. Why people would spread such slander is beyond me.

Maybe you think this is true just because they have a website, in which case I'll throw up a website selling ocean front property in Lubbock, and you can happily pay me large sums of money for it.

[curmudgeonII]

I thank you for showing that my original comment on this article was correct:
Then wait for the usual anti-Masonic gibberish.

[oldtimer]

I am a 32nd degree Mason and a Shriner and never swore an oath to Allah. What you are posting is pure lies and garbage.

[Notwithstanding]

What oath do you take?

[oldtimer]

I've seen your stuff before Coleus: You need to work on cleaning up your Bishopry before casting stones.

[Coleus]

I'm not too sure what you mean. I've posted that there are as many as if not more Protestant ministers who molested children than Catholic. So I think the Protestants need some cleaning up as well, what do you think? And I don't believe I really casted any stones on this thread. AND I THOUGHT MASONRY IS 'NOT' A RELIGION SO WHY BRING UP A RELIGIOUS POSITION SUCH AS A BISHOP?

[oldtimer]

I took an oath to God, on a Holy Bible that I would try to be a better man, as well as being benevolent, caring, and prudent as well as among the other virtues.

Fourteen Presidents of the US have been Masons, and Bob Dole would have been the fifteenth. The list of Masons from John Wayne to Audie Murphy, to Jerome Kern can go on almost forever.

[Coleus]

And post 4 is wrong? I don't think so, I already asked a shiner who stated it's true. I'm not criticizing what it says, I'm criticizing why Shriners are saying that it's not part of their oath.

[oldtimer]

We had a Baptist preacher in a nearby suburb doing a power point presentation that popped up with child porn...the difference is that he is history...as in GONE!

Unlike so many pedophile priests who were allowed to victumize for too many years, and continue to do so.

I perceive you as a rabid Roman Catholic who has been fed the anti-Masonic sht from a Pope 125 years ago and his Papal Bull, as well as ex-communication because the Church could not control the Masons.

If I am wrong I will eat my hat.

[Coleus]

We had a Baptist preacher in a nearby suburb doing a power point presentation that popped up with child porn...the difference is that he is history...as in GONE! >>>

That's a good policy and I think the RCC will now be doing it albeit a bit late but necessary. However, I must reiterate, there are many ministers who committed acts against children and were fired only after the police arrested him.

Rabid? No, not me, just a general, practicing one. I go to church and am involved in my parish with various activities and ministries, and am in the Knights of Columbus which is NOT a Catholic organization. Incidentally, our Knights council and the Masonic Lodge hold an annual dinner dance every year and donate the proceeds to a local charity.

Actually, I never heard of the Church being against the Masons until a few years ago, I was a bit surprised since I went to Catholic School, attened mass regularly where I heard Homilies and read my weekly bulletin and read my weekly issue of my Diocesan Newspaper and after I did some research, I did, indeed, find out that the "official Church" is against it. I've asked priests about it (you must remember, a priest has no real authority on making such decisions, all authority comes from the Pope and through his bishops) and many have indicated that it's no big deal today but when I did call "any" diocese in America for an "official" policy, it is very clear that a Catholic can't not become a mason and remain in good standing as a Catholic.

One a Pope issues an encyclical, it IS the law and can not be reversed by another Pope. So it will stand until the end of the church. Here is the popes encyclical, as I stated previously, it can't be changed and we really can not join a blue lodge. Secret societies are mentioned in the Canon Law based on this Encyclical. I've read the 3 degrees somewhere on the net, so I guess it isn't a big secret anymore as to what you do and say, and it does seem to lean to the New Age.

Pope Leo XIII issued Humanum Genus, against freemasonry.

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/leo_xiii/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_18840420_humanum-genus_en.html

http://www.petersnet.net/browse/2652.htm

http://www.cin.org/mateo/9512171.html

http://www.cin.org/users/james/files/masons1.htm

http://www.olrl.org/doctrine/vsmasons.html

http://www.marianland.com/freem001.html

[Coleus]

If I am wrong I will eat my hat.>>>>

Enjoy, it tastes better with some steak sauce and salt.